Time and weather managed to create a 40-foot hole in a wall of concrete bags that was built during the 1980s on the bank of Ross Creek near Harwood Road. The Santa Clara Valley Water District repaired the large hole in about a week.

Crews began work July 20 with delivery of a load of large rocks. The main work began on July 25 and was completed by July 29. Workers used the rocks, pea gravel and concrete to plug the 40-foot hole. There were no trees in the area, but some vegetation was removed.

“Creek erosion has the potential to cause local flooding, as well as having a domino effect on other nearby structures if left unaddressed,” said Marty Grimes of the water district’s communications unit. This could mean erosion under the bank, causing problems for homes near the creek.

“In this case, the sack concrete failure was severe and could have unraveled entirely this winter, compromising access along the maintenance road and launching more sack concrete bags into the creek, with the potential of creating erosion further downstream,” Grimes said.

Strong banks keep the creek water flowing to the capacity the creek was designed to handle, especially during heavy winter rains, Grimes said.

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